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Can you be a salaried employee and be required to work 50 hours a week and if you don't you are docked?

My DD and I were talking about her job and she said she didn't want to be salaried because you were required to work 50 hours a week and if you don't you are docked yet if you work over 50 hours you do not get OT.

I looked at the FLSA website and of course couldn't find anything on this.

I believe every state has its own employee salary regulation but if not here is what Wisconsin says on the matter:

Quote:

s there a limit to the number of hours that can be worked by salaried employees?

No. Employers have the right to schedule employees as they feel is necessary. If the employee is not exempt, overtime must be paid for hours worked in excess of 40 in a week. In factories and mercantile establishments employees must have at least 24 consecutive hours of rest in each calendar week, under §103.85, Wisconsin Statutes. The employer can require that employees work extra hours if they are necessary.

Can you be a salaried employee and be required to work 50 hours a week and if you don't you are docked?

My DD and I were talking about her job and she said she didn't want to be salaried because you were required to work 50 hours a week and if you don't you are docked yet if you work over 50 hours you do not get OT.

I looked at the FLSA website and of course couldn't find anything on this.

Any ideas on where I might find if this is legal?

Your daughter is classified as what's considered an "exempt" employee, which differs from "non-exempt" employees (who receive overtime -- whether they are salaried or paid hourly).

Your daughter should first of all, determine if her position is really an exempt position. Many employers misclassify their workers because they don't want to pay overtime. This website has a short overview:

If she really is an exempt employee, it seems that this is the case under FLSA:

Quote:

An exempt employee has virtually "no rights at all" under the FLSA overtime rules. About all an exempt employee is entitled to under the FLSA is to receive the full amount of the base salary in any work period during which s/he performs any work (less any permissible deductions). Nothing in the FLSA prohibits an employer from requiring exempt employees to "punch a clock," or work a particular schedule, or "make up" time lost due to absences. Nor does the FLSA limit the amount of work time anemployer may require or expect from any employee, on any schedule. ("Mandatory overtime" is not restricted by the FLSA.)

White collar/professional workers are not entitled to OT pay unless otherwise agreed upon by employer.

Blue collar, OT must be compensated.

So unless she is standing for long periods of time or doing physical work, the employer is not required to compensate for OT. Some do, but increasingly, employers are expecting more work for the same pay these days.

Exempt employees may work 20 hours a week or 100, it makes no difference.
They are paid for the body of work, not the hours. As long as it takes to get the work done, hopefully sometimes less to balance off the long weeks. In most cases no need to use personal time off or sick leave for appointments,
long lunches, leaving early or arriving late as long as the work gets done.
I generally work 9 hours a day, but with an upcoming project will likely add
8-10 hours on the weekends to that. Most people would have realized that before agreeing to an exempt position, and would negotiate a salary to be worth it.

Exempt employees may be required to apply accrued hours toward time away from work but they may noy be docked from actual pay on an hour for hour basis. Any employer who docks on an hour for hour basis risks losing the exemption status. Employers may withhold a full day's pay for an unexcused absence of a salaried employ but not anything less than a half day.

Thank You.. everyone. I have some reading to do. It sure doesn't seem right that they can demand you work more than 40 to be salary because if you consider that extra 10 hours you probably are making what you would make if you were hourly with O/T

The only benefit I think is that they do offer more vacation time than they do for hourly employees.

I have seen companies where many of the salaried workers are expected to work 50+ hr weeks on a regular basis. It is expected to stay late for meetings that often are scheduled at 6 and 7pm+ and nobody dare try to get out of the meetings, else deemed a slacker. Also common lunch time meetings where you are expected at last minute to cancel any plans you might have had. Don't worry, they ordered out pizza for the lunch time meeting, so you won't have a reason to leave the office. Just stay at the meeting and work while eating the pizza. Often middle of the night emergencies and weekend work are expected for support type positions.

If you ever mention working 55+ hours to a manager, hoping to get a pat on the back, you probably get the response "everyone works long hours here" instead of a thank you.

Then they load you with more work than you can handle, and you work longer hours to meet the new workload, to meet due dates, and to handle the dozens of emergency issues that get delegated your way day in and day out.

And when coworkers get laid off, the lucky ones that stay get to do their original job plus take on the duties of the person that was laid off. After all, they are the "lucky one" that didn't lose their job. The position for the laid of person does not get filled. You get a BlackBerry and get emails all weekend and through each evening and even as soon as you wake up, before you head to work. You answer these emails, and the folks on the other end are emailing at all hours as well.

Soon, "work" means, whenever you are awake. Sometime(well, always), you sleep with your BlackBerry near your bed, and if you wake in the middle of the night, you might just check it. And IF you reply to late email, you might be shocked when you get a reply back 2 minutes later at 3AM!

No kidding. Welcome to corporate America.

Oh - and no raises this year....remember, things are tight and you are lucky because you didn't get laid off. And, another layoff might be around the corner, so you don't wanna miss that 7PM conference call and be labelled a slacker.

If you are salaried, your pay cannot be 'docked' or reduced. They can require that you take a sick day or vacation day if you work less than half of your regularly scheduled shift. But if you work at least half then you have met the requirements for your salary. That's for tax purposes. Of course they can say that you haven't met your performance expectations for your job if you work less than they want you to, and give you a pay cut or other punishment.

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